Tens of thousands of new homes are set to be built in Hungary within months: housing price plunge on the horizon?
Over the next two to three months, developers nationwide are expected to enter the market with plans to construct more than 25,000 new homes—many of which will qualify under the Home Start Programme—according to real estate.com’s market insights shared with MTI on Tuesday.
Tens of thousands of new homes before the 2026 general elections
The statement quoted László Balogh, the lead economic expert at realestate.com, who revealed that housing developers have significantly accelerated their activity recently. In recent weeks alone, 6,000 to 7,000 new homes have been announced, and market intelligence suggests that four to five major developers could announce plans for at least 25,000 additional new homes in the coming months. He added that this surge in housing developments could ease the tight supply and bring a fresh boost in the quality of homes for sale in major cities.
In the capital, interest in new homes eligible for the Home Start Programme is on average 22% higher per listing compared to new builds outside the scheme. Meanwhile, provincial cities and county seats see a 6–12% preference for properties meeting the programme’s criteria. A portion of these new homes will be located in regeneration zones, enabling first-time buyers to reclaim the 5% VAT. At a price of 1.5 million forints per square metre, a 40-square-metre flat could see a refund exceeding 2.8 million forints, the property portal explained.
Additional government supports
Market demand could be further boosted in January 2026 by a government proposal announced on Monday, offering public servants an annual housing allowance of one million forints. Additionally, new legislation on condominium ownership will take effect in February 2026, allowing buyers to secure mortgage loans for new builds straight from the planning stage.
László Balogh noted this change could usher in a new era for the new-build housing market, simplifying and speeding up the mortgage and purchasing processes. This could trigger a surge in sales in the first quarter of 2026 not seen in years.
A rare house-building boom
The expert added that most of the announced and upcoming homes are expected to be handed over within the next one and a half to two years. If current projects proceed smoothly, 2027 could see housing construction records shattered, possibly setting new national highs not achieved in decades.
He recalled that the previous peak occurred in the mid-2000s when more than 40,000 new homes were delivered in both 2004 and 2005. In the past five years, 2020 marked the highest output, with 28,200 new homes completed.
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For once some good news for home buyers. Increasing supply is the way to keep prices from rising. Lowering tax for new home buyers is helpful. As far as lending is concerned the question is whether the borrowers are truly qualified for the amounts they are borrowing. The US got into trouble by 2008 with crazy NINJA loans (No Income No Job or Asset loans). You don’t want borrowers defaulting on payments later. The other question is how much these housing supports are going to cost the government and how the government is going to cope with loss of tax revenue and payment supports. Will the overall growth in construction provide revenues to offset some of this? Maybe.